A brand is a brand, just as a logo is a logo, a name is a name and a tagline is just that.

A brand is a promise. A promise to your customers and those you want to be your customers (and others, too) that you promise to deliver “X” to them. Your name, your logo, tagline, words, website, marketing effort. ….ALL of these are components to your promise.

Now, get this…be careful because your social media efforts are part of your promise too. Everything you do, post, say (literally and figuratively) can and will be viewed as part of your promise, your — BRAND — by an audience.

Do all you must to ensure that you are saying what you want, where and when you want to, targeted at who you want, lest you waste energy, momentum, opportunity, money, goodwill and more.

Coincidentally, I was just having an email chat with the founder of a really cool startup about what she’s doing with her brand. Cindy Gallop is the founder and CEO of MLNP.tv, the “Etsy of Sexy.” She’s an Ad Exec genius who’s changing something that’s been viewed as secretive and dodgy, at best, to something that’s, well, ETSY like. It’s about craft, persona, characters, expression and, of course, money. Her promise is essentially that THIS IS NOW DIFFERENT. WE’RE EMPOWERING YOU. BECAUSE IT’S NOW ABOUT YOU, IT’S NOW OK.

So, take a page from Cindy’s playbook and do something different to make a connection with a promise. Do something unique that’s truly from your soul, that no one else can deliver. You know you’re on the right path when your promise delivers on your vision!

Now, let’s look at these logos. They’re great not because they promise anything, but because they plant a seed for your promise to grow.